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Tech NewsGadgets
DoJ Now Investigating Huawei for Allegedly Violating Iran Sanctions
In 2017, the US Department of Commerce fined ZTE almost $900 million for violating sanctions by illegally shipping US goods to Iran. Then, last week the DoC stepped up the punishment after ZTE failed to fully comply with its restrictions by slapping a ban on ZTE, preventing it from purchasing parts and components from all … Continued
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Tech News
China’s Ambitious New Rain-Making System Would Be as Big as Alaska
China’s state-owned aerospace corporation is embarking on a plan that would see tens of thousands of fuel-burning, cloud-seeding chambers dispersed across the Tibetan Plateau in an attempt to increase rainfall in the region. It sounds impressive, but it’s an open question as to whether this extensive rain-making system will even work, or how it may … Continued
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Tech NewsPrivacy and Security
John McAfee-Backed Cryptocurrency’s Thousands of Investors Exposed in Data Breach
A leaky database discovered online contains a wealth of sensitive data belonging to thousands of investors in Bezop cryptocurrency, including photocopies their driver’s licenses and passports, according to a report from Kromtech Security. Kromtech announced on Wednesday that Bezop, which offers its own cryptocurrency “tokens” in addition to… some sort of blockchain-based e-commerce app, left … Continued
By Dell Cameron -
Tech NewsNews
Amazon and Tesla Facilities Named Among the Most Dangerous Workplaces in America [Updated]
On Wednesday, the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) released a report singling out 12 companies that most put their workers at risk, and Amazon and Tesla both made the list. “Every day there are workers who don’t come home to their families because of tragedies we know could have been prevented,” … Continued
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Tech NewsAmazon
Amazon Sued by Former Human Resources Administrator for Alleged ‘Unlawful Employment Practices’
Amazon Logistics acted discriminatorily and unlawfully fired a former senior human resources administrator, a suit filed in Florida’s Southern District Court alleges. The HR staffer, Jorge Mejia, started performing HR duties for Amazon Logistics in late 2014, working a “flexible” schedule. But nearly three years later, when Mejia claims all other senior HR admins would … Continued
By Avery Ellis -
Tech NewsGoogle
Google Tasks Is a Barebones (But Effective) To-Do App That Makes Gmail More Useful
Google may have paused development on Allo, but it seems the company can’t quite quit its habit of churning out apps just to keeps the wheels moving. Today it launched Google Tasks on Android and iOS, which actually rises above Google’s overloaded app cycle thanks to a clean UI and handy integration with Gmail and … Continued
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Tech NewsPrivacy and Security
This iOS Security App Notifies You If Someone Tampers With Your Mac
Security experts often warn that it’s much easier for hackers to compromise a device if they have physical access to it. This security scenario is often referred to as an “evil maid” attack, the idea being that an attacker could sneak into a target’s hotel room and tamper with his laptop while he’s out of … Continued
By Kate Conger -
Tech NewsNews
Chinese Police Confiscate 600 Bitcoin Mining Rigs in ‘Largest Power Theft Case’ in Years
Earlier this year, the Chinese government reportedly outlined plans to limit energy use by cryptocurrency miners and encourage their “orderly” exit from the industry. In the wake of intensified crackdown efforts, some of China’s largest miners opened operations abroad, but it seems at least one mining group tried to operate underground instead. On Tuesday, police … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
Startups in China Are Hiring Women as ‘Programmer Motivators,’ and It’s Just as Sexist as It Sounds
Shen Yue works as a “programmer motivator” at a consumer finance company in China. As the name suggests, her job is to inspirit programmers at her company, which involves chatting them up, coordinating social activities, and even giving them massages, according to a recent report from the New York Times. Ms. Shen is 25-years-old with … Continued
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Tech News
This Recently Discovered Fifth-Century Massacre in Sweden Is So Game of Thrones We Can’t Even Handle It
Scientists in Sweden have completed a preliminary investigation of one of the most disturbing archaeological sites to be uncovered in recent memory. Over 1,500 years ago, scores of villagers were mercilessly killed in their homes by an unknown band of marauders, who left the bodies where they fell. And inexplicably, the killers refrained from collecting … Continued
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Tech NewsGoogle
All the New Features Coming to Your Gmail that Seem Actually Useful
Google has officially announced the new look that’s coming to Gmail.com after images of its redesign leaked a few days prior. The revamp brings with it, besides a much-need paint job, some long-awaited features that users could only get through third-party email clients. The visual refresh puts Gmail in line with the rest of Google’s … Continued
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Tech NewsSploid
Watching This Artist Paint on Water Is Like a Relaxing Massage for My Brain
Popular in Turkey and parts of Asia, ebru is a unique form of painting that swaps a canvas for a liquid-filled pan that’s sprinkled and splattered with vibrant colored pigments. Using specialized tools, unique patterns can be created by carefully mixing the floating pigments through a process that might be even more satisfying than the … Continued
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Tech NewsAmazon
Amazon’s Echo for Kids Is a Dot With a Case, Cuter Responses, and Parental Controls
The age of digital assistants is already here, and with them, we have easy-to-use disembodied voices that attempt to answer our every beck and call. However, sometimes those answers aren’t exactly things you’d want a child to hear (Warning: NSFW audio), so Amazon went and created a version of Alexa specifically meant for kids. Starting … Continued
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Tech NewsNews
Man Who Crowdfunded Submarine Sentenced to Life for Murder of Journalist Kim Wall
Peter Madsen has been found guilty of murdering journalist Kim Wall onboard his homemade submarine. The eccentric designer has been sentenced to life in prison for murder, dismemberment, and indecent handling of a corpse. Kim Wall, a freelance journalist writing a story about Madsen’s crowdfunded projects, accompanied Madsen for a trip on his submarine last … Continued
By Rhett Jones -
Tech News
This Real-Life, Coin-Shooting Mario Block Is My New Retirement Plan
Stressed about job security? Worried about making ends meet? Super Mario might be a plumber, but do you ever see him fixing pipes? No, and why would he when his world is filled with random blocks that spew gold coins? Apparently hoping for an early retirement, hacker Jonathan Whalen attempted to build a real-life version … Continued
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Tech NewsPrivacy and Security
Hackers Designed a ‘Master Key’ to Unlock Millions of Hotel Room Doors
A critical flaw in electronic locks left millions of hotel rooms worldwide vulnerable to hackers. Now, the security researchers who developed the attack are helping hotels patch the problem, literally door to door. Tomi Tuominen and Timo Hirvonen, who both work for the international cybersecurity firm F-Secure, uncovered a design flaw in the software of … Continued
By Dell Cameron -
Tech NewsApple
Behold Tim Cook’s Obvious Discomfort Attending Trump’s White House State Dinner
Apple CEO Tim Cook has had a particularly long and tortuous relationship with our big boy in the White House. To recap, it’s included Donald Trump’s calls for an Apple boycott, awkward phone calls where the president promised Cook tax cuts if Apple did more manufacturing in the US, humiliating advisory meetings, Cook’s outrage over … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsApple
iOS 11.3.1 Fixes That Thing Where Third-Party Screen Repairs Made iPhone 8 Touchscreens Stop Working
Apple has released iOS 11.3.1, which includes what the tech giant says is a fix for an issue where people who used third-party repair services to replace their displays had their devices become unresponsive. According to release notes, “iOS 11.3.1 improves the security of your iPhone or iPad and addresses an issue where touch input … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsNews
E-Waste Innovator Will Go to Jail for Making Windows Restore Disks That Only Worked With Valid Licenses
California man Eric Lundgren, an electronic waste entrepreneur who produced tens of thousands of Windows restore disks intended to extend the lifespan of aging computers, lost a federal appeals court case in Miami after it ruled “he had infringed Microsoft’s products to the tune of $700,000,” the Washington Post reported on Tuesday. Per the Post, … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech News
Why Papuan Men Made Daggers From Human Thigh Bones
Up until the 20th century, the use of bone daggers among the Papuan males of New Guinea was commonplace. Many of these daggers were forged from the femurs of large birds, but some were made from the bones of humans. New research shows which of the two materials provided for a superior dagger, demonstrating that, … Continued